Musician Finance 2: Saving for Retirement

Ever wondered how to go about saving for retirement? While there is a basic state pension in the UK, many musicians need to supplement it by making contributions to a private pension pot.

For the second instalment of this 3-part blog series on musician’s finances, I talked to two financial experts, Adam Liddelow and Claire Sweet (amateur musician and specialist in musician mortgages), about how to plan for the future.

Adam

The state pension alone is rarely enough for most peoples’ needs, so you’ll need to supplement your retirement income with a private pension. It can be surprising how much you need – as a rule of thumb, for every £100,000 in your pension, you can expect a yearly income of around £4,000-£5,000.

The government encourages us to save for our retirement by providing tax relief on any contributions we make into our pension – so for a basic rate tax payer, this means that for every £100 we put into our pension, the government adds £25.

The pension should be invested in a well-diversified portfolio, which because it is held within a pension, is able to grow largely tax-free.

“If you are able to contribute regularly over 20-30 years, you will be surprised at what you end up with when you retire!”

–Adam Liddelow

Claire

Due to the wonders of compound interest, the earlier you start to save the better – even if you only start with a small amount each month. Once you know what level of income you will require at your chosen retirement age, we can work backwards to see how much you need to invest now – just waiting 10 years to start, can mean having to contribute much more per month to meet the same target.

This can also be a great way to maximise tax relief through the use of ISAs and pensions. You should aim for your investments to keep up with or beat the rate of inflation if they are to have the same buying power in the future – your Financial Adviser can show you the best way to do this, dependent on your attitude to risk.

Bottom line? Now is the time to start saving for your pension. A little bit of planning and discipline now means a much more relaxed future.

Check out the other blogs in this series:

Adam Liddelow works at Liddelow Financial Services, an Isle of Wight and London-based advisory firm, providing expert wealth planning for private and commercial clients in the UK.

David Carnack entered the Financial Services industry in 1987 following a brief career as a professional musician after graduating from the Guildhall School of Music. He gained extensive industry experience during the following ten years before setting up his own company, David Carnac & Co., an independent practice totally focused on meeting the requirements of his clients. In 2017 he celebrates twenty years in business and twenty-five years since arranging his first mortgage for a musician client.

Claire Sweet is a Financial Adviser and amateur musician who has been helping musicians organise their life and their finances for more than nine years, using a friendly but sensible approach to provide advice to clients of all ages and backgrounds. Further details can be found at www.peacetogether.co.uk.

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